U.S. Pat. No. 4,767,112 discloses a device for receiving and further conveying folded products. Arms which respectively have a gripper are attached to a transport chain. These arms are made to change their movement from a linear to an arcuate motion at a folded-product transfer station, whereby a decrease in speed is effected. After the take-over of the folded products by the grippers of the arms which are controlled by a stationary cam, the link elements of the transport chain enter between two guide rails. At the first guide rail a further cam is arranged through which each gripper of each arm is made to open itself when situated above a folded-product transfer station. However, delivery of folded products to different delivery stations is not possible.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,775,136 discloses a product folding and transporting system whereby the products can be inserted into individual compartments of the transport system. Above the product transport system there is provided a rotating chain, the outwardly extending tabs of which cause the uniform opening of individual compartments of the transport system. Into these compartments opened in this manner products are inserted, with their initially incomplete folding spine being completed just before entering a respective compartment. For this purpose rotating spreading elements are arranged around the rotating chain.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,828,242 shows another transport system for folded products. A plurality of interconnected segments moved in sequence on a guide rail are conveyed further in that lower tabs engage with the individual segment edges. As the tabs on the rotating chains,are equally spaced from one another, the spacing of the products conveyed is maintained accordingly. By means of an endless gear belt rotating below the a guide rail, whereon the segments are movably arranged, the spacing between the individual segments on the guide rail can also be maintained uniformly.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,678,174 discloses a device for receiving and further conveying folded products. By means of this device the open ends of the products can remain open during conveyance in hanging position, or the products can be conveyed changing from an open to a closed condition. There is no mention made of a differentiated deposit of the folded products at different delivery locations.
There is a need for folded products, which have been processed in a folding apparatus and are transported out of it, to be directed to different delivery locations. For example, depending on the printed image produced by the form cylinder of the printing units of the preceding rotary press and depending on the folding mode, each second or third product of the product stream may be identical. As such, the need arises to collect the products identical to one another on one location, where further processing--for example adding inserts to these identical products--can take place.